wshaw14
1 week ago
How the 8-Zone Could Deliver Transformational Growth
By Shane Williams
President and Chief Executive Officer of WRLG
In the last year we have conducted successful drill programs at the Rowan deposit (including 70.8 grams/tonne gold over 8.3 meters) and the Madsen deposit (including 47.44 grams/tonne gold over 3.2 meters).
Madsen currently has resources defined down to depths of over one kilometer. That sounds deep, but the Red Lake District is known for high-grade gold veins that typically get thicker at lower depths.
The discovery of a deep +15 g/t zone can radically change the production profile of a mine.
For instance, Newmont Goldcorp/Evolution’s Red Lake Mine produced 58,875 ounces of gold @ 8.1 g/t in 1995. The next year, they discovered a high-grade gold zone at 1,400 meters depth. By 2004, the Red Lake Mine was producing 552,000 ounces of gold @ 77.1 g/t.
Similar transformational growth occurred at Kirkland/Agnico Eagle’s Macassa Mine in Ontario. Average annual production was 31,000 ounces of gold @ 11.2 g/t gold in the 2000’s. Then they discovered the deep high-grade SMC deposit. By 2018, annual production at Macassa was 240,126 ounces of gold @ 21.6 g/t.
We are starting to focus on a potentially transformative area of Madsen called the “8-Zone”. It sits at 1,300 meters depth, at the bottom of the existing shaft. We believe this may be a rich gold zone, analogous to the discoveries that transformed the production profiles of the Red Lake and Macassa mines.
Red Lake is famous for its high-grade narrow gold veins. About a billion years ago, when the molten gold came up through cracks in the rock, it would occasionally hit a softer area of rock. So instead of narrow veins, you get a pooling of the metallic fluids.
Pure Gold did a limited amount of drilling in the 8 Zone. A strike length of 130 meters was established. The assays returned intercepts of 4.3 meters @ 466 g/t gold, 5.5 meters @ 342 g/t gold and 8.2 meters @ 120 g/t gold.
Pure Gold was forced to drill the 8-Zone from the surface, which was not efficient. We’re going to fix that problem by extending a ramp downward, so that we can drill closer to the target, with better accuracy and more useful angles.
If the 4.3 meters @ 466 g/t gold intercept is representative of further mineralisation, it could be transformative for West Red Lake Gold. This would not require upgrades to our infrastructure. The existing mill and tailings facility could handle an additional low-tonnage high-grade feed. Our fixed costs wouldn’t change much. It would be a kicker to the bottom line.
Given the geology of the Red Lake Camp, this 1,300-meter 8-Zone deposit could go much deeper than 1,300 meters. In the same gold camp, Evolution is mining at 3,000 meters depth. We are eager to find out how deep the 8-Zone goes.
There is a lot of work to be done on the 8-zone before we can make a confident projection about the economics. The metal is in a different rock type and we would need to upgrade the shaft. There is already a small indicated resource of 87,700 oz at 18 g/t gold. We intend to do the drilling and engineering work because rock that rich is rare and valuable.
wshaw14
1 month ago
https://westredlakegold.com/news/
December 10, 2024
West Red Lake Gold Envisions High-Grade Underground Satellite at Fork Deposit – Madsen Property
West Red Lake Gold Mines Ltd. (“West Red Lake Gold” or “WRLG” or the “Company”) (TSXV: WRLG) (OTCQB: WRLGF) is pleased to provide an update on the Company’s interpretation and vision for the Fork Deposit (“Fork”) at its 100% owned Madsen Property located in the Red Lake Gold District of Northwestern Ontario, Canada.
The Fork deposit currently contains an Indicated mineral resource of 20,900 ounces (“oz”) grading 5.3 grams per tonne (“g/t”) gold (“Au”), with an additional Inferred resource of 49,500 oz grading 5.2 g/t Au.
WRLG has recently completed a re-evaluation of the Fork deposit and has recognized a shallow, high-grade, low-plunging zone of gold mineralization that is located approximately 250 meters (“m”) southwest from existing underground development at Madsen.
The zone trends north-south and has been defined by previous drilling over an area of 400m by 250m and shows potential for further expansion along strike to the south. Average thickness of the zone is conservatively estimated at approximately 2m based on existing core length intercepts.
The shallow nature of this target will allow for systematic and efficient infill and expansion drilling from surface with holes averaging 150-250m depth. Fork will be a priority drill target for WRLG in 2025.
FORK DRILLING HIGHLIGHTS (HISTORIC):
Hole RUM-08-49 Intersected 13.05m @ 13.97 g/t Au, from 107.65m to 120.7m, Including 3.63m @ 30.79 g/t Au, from 110.37m to 114.00m, Also including 1.97m @ 32.55 g/t Au, from 118.73m to 120.70m.
Hole PDM04-318 Intersected 9.3m @ 8.14 g/t Au, from 128.1m to 137.4m, Including 0.7m @ 85.70 g/t Au, from 128.1m to 128.8m, Also including 0.6m @ 21.3 g/t Au, from 136.8m to 137.4m.
Hole RUM-08-68 Intersected 1.3m @ 50.48 g/t Au, from 95.7m to 97.0m, Including 0.2m @ 169.09 g/t Au, from 95.8m to 96.0m, Also including 0.4m @ 53.27 g/t Au, from 96.2m to 96.6m.
Hole PG14-011 Intersected 3.5m @ 17.18 g/t Au, from 152.5m to 156.0m, Including 1.6m @ 33.80 g/t Au, from 154.4m to 156.0m.
Shane Williams, President and CEO, stated, “What was once considered a somewhat broad, intermediate-grade portion of the satellite resource inventory at Madsen, Fork has now been re-envisioned as a high-grade near-mine resource expansion target that will be a top priority for the exploration team in 2025. The shallow nature of this target will allow for rapid advancement through surface definition drilling and, with its proximity to existing underground development, it’s not difficult to see a path forward for Fork making its way into the production pipeline at Madsen. This strategy is directly in-line with WRLG’s hub-and-spoke model for Madsen as we continue to evaluate and advance additional high-grade gold opportunities within the Red Lake district.
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